


Astray

by Sarcxstic_Stilinski



Category: The Lost Boys (Movies)
Genre: Alcohol, Attempted Sexual Assault, Canon-Typical Violence, Drugs, F/M, Fluff, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Light Angst, M/M, Multi, Neurodiversity, Smoking, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:49:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28885653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarcxstic_Stilinski/pseuds/Sarcxstic_Stilinski
Summary: " After locking eyes with me, David seemed almost confused for a split second before he was trailing his eyes over all the features of my face. His thumb rubbed against my quivering lip as if he didn't realize he was doing it. Then, he turned my head so I was looking at Marko.Marko met my eyes and then immediately brought his thumb to his mouth. "Well, this is interesting." "After an alcohol-induced car crash that should have left Luna dead in a ditch in the middle of nowhere, the last thing she expected was to wake up in a city she didn't recognize and find characters she had only seen in a movie. Of course, she couldn't let the opportunity to change the ending of the movie to just slip through her fingers, and if there was romance along the way, well she certainly wasn't opposed.The Lost Boys (1987)Lost Boys x OCStarted: Jan 8, 2021Completed: TBH
Relationships: David (Lost Boys)/Dwayne (Lost Boys)/Marko (Lost Boys)/Paul (Lost Boys)/Original Character(s), David (Lost Boys)/Original Female Character(s), Dwayne (Lost Boys)/Original Female Character(s), Lost Boys (Lost Boys)/Original Character(s), Marko (Lost Boys)/Original Female Character(s), Paul (Lost Boys)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 51





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is not written beforehand. I post the chapters as I write them, so I'm sorry if I disappear for a bit. I'll try to remain consistent!

"Move you fucking hand, jackass," I grumbled, shoving Johnathon's hand away from my thigh for the fifteenth time in thirty minutes. The rain pattered harshly against the windshield as I drove.

"Come on, doll," he whispered, blowing smoke into my face as he did so. "You know you want me as much as I want you." His hand fell onto my thigh again, but this time, I smacked him harshly.

I pushed his chest, trying to keep my hand on the steering wheel. "I am too fucked up for this shit. Do you want us to wreck or something?"

Johnathon let out a cackling kind of giggle and shrugged his shoulders. "With the way you're driving, I don't think I even have a choice."

He wasn't wrong, even with my mind blurred from the immense amount of alcohol and god knows what else in my body, I knew I was swerving through the empty road. We were in the middle of nowhere; we always were.

"I'm sorry? Do you have a better plan? You couldn't even lift yourself from the couch when we left."

Johnathon lifted his hand and then opened and closed it repeatedly, a motion that he didn't want to hear what I was saying. "All you do is whine, I swear to god."

Before I had even thought about what I was doing, I threw my hand out and smacked his chest hard enough for him to groan lowly. He retaliated and punched my arm hard enough for me to swerve the car. I brought it back to the road and sent him a nasty glare. "Are you fucking crazy?" He didn't like that because he threw another punch, and when I threw a hit back, he did it again and again until I had lost control of the car.

I tried grabbing the wheel, but I could already feel us hydroplaning, the car not moving like I wanted it to. Johnathon was yelling, but I couldn't really understand what he was saying. My ears were ringing, my breathing was caught in my throat, and my vision was blurring. My mind was somehow going both a hundred miles a minute and nowhere at all.

Then, there was the impact, but my brain had completely shut down by then. I barely felt our car smack into the tree. Johnathon ended up flying out of the windshield and into the ditch below. The dumbass never wanted to wear a seatbelt, and I guess it finally came to bite him in the ass.

I blearily looked around for a few moments and then down at myself. There was a lot of blood, but I wasn't sure where it came from. I didn't _look_ injured, but I also really couldn't tell.

I was slowly drifting off anyway, no time to think about it. Aren't you supposed to pray at moments like these? Ask for some sort of forgiveness, to be saved so you could live a bit longer? There wasn't much to pray for though. It seemed like bullshit to pray after condemning the thought of any god all of your life, and there wasn't anything much to stick around for. If this was my last moment, I wish I was able to say goodbye to my dog at least; give her a few more pets. I didn't have family, and Johnathon was the only other person I really talked to. Well, maybe I would have tipped the server at the restaurant a few dollars more, or I would have helped that grandma with her groceries instead of walking past.

None of that really mattered now, though. ' _I wonder what happens next.'_

I certainly hadn't expected to wake back up, but I supposed it wasn't the worst. What was the worst was that I had no idea where I was.

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was someone tapping my shoulder incessantly. I grumbled lowly and shoved the finger away gently, but when they started again, I finally opened my eyes. I threw my fist forward to hit the perpetrator. There was a grunt and giggling, and when I turned to see who was doing it, I was met with three children who immediately screamed and ran.

"She's alive! She's alive!" One screamed as she ran while another begged for the others not to leave him behind.

I groaned lowly and patted down my front. "I fucking hate children." I gingerly pulled myself off the concrete and looked around. Where the hell am I? After patting my pockets again, I found my phone, but it was dead and therefore useless, and I wasn't going to ask some random store to use their wall outlet, so I was stuck without a way to call and only a few dollars in my pocket.

I grumbled and kicked up dust. How did I even get here? It almost didn't look real. There were more punks than I had ever seen where I normally lived, and by just peering into the windows, the technology looked old. Hell, I hadn't seen a cell phone in sight, and normally everyone had them out.

I turned a few times and then caught sight of a pretty girl with the same style as me; I could see the Dead Kennedys backpatch from here. "Hey," I tried calling to her, "hey, ma'am." She turned her head, and my eyes trailed over her mohawk. It was taller than I had ever grown mine out to be, and it was still curly even though it had been brushed out to maintain the style.

Her eyes locked with mine and then trailed over my jacket, a small smile crawling to her face. "You're awfully bold to be wearing a flag like that out in public, baby," she said putting a cigarette between her teeth as she spoke. "You're just asking to get in a fight, and the surf-nazis can be awfully determined."

I quirked an eyebrow, looking down at the patch on my jacket, a bright and bold bisexual flag right on my chest. It had never really been an issue before. Why was it now? "You say that like I can't throw a punch." I stepped up to her, and her friends flanked either side, more as a precaution than anything, I could tell.

She was quiet and then a bright grin slipped over her face. "Well, I would hope. What'd you get my attention for?"

One of her friends licked his teeth. "Yeah, little puppy, what are you looking for?" She shoved him gently, and he laughed loudly. "Only joking around."

I ignored him and continued talking to the original girl. "Do you know where the nearest, cheapest motel around here is? I don't really know where I am."

The third person finally piped up. "Like we couldn't tell," she snickered, her hand slipping into the other girl's. "If you need a place to stay, there's really cheap one near the boardwalk." She gestured behind her. "It's that way. It's not the safest, but we used to stay there all the time. Only forty for a room every night, but if you can't pay it now, they have a tab system. They give you about a month from the first night before they really bring it up, and then you got another before they call the cops."

The first girl spoke up again. "We can walk you there if you want, but you might want to take the patch off if you're not in the mood for a fight. I can't stop you, obviously, but the surf-nazis..." She trailed off.

I rolled my eyes. "I'll kick their fuckin' teeth in if they try something. Just by their name, I know they deserve it."

The male of the group threw his arm around my shoulder and started leading us. "I like you. Let's become friends. What's your name."

I swatted his hand, but he didn't move it; I didn't really mind. Red flags weren't being immediately set off in my mind. "My name is Luna. How about you."

He placed his hand on his chest. "My name is Ivory. That one-" he pointed to the girl with the mohawk –"is Jamila, and her girlfriend is Morgue."

Morgue cut her eyes at me as if she expected me to say something rude, but I just shrugged my shoulders. "That's cool. I'm guessing y'all live around here?"

"Yeah, since we were kids. Santa Carla is a pretty dangerous though – murder capital of the world."

 _Santa Carla? Like that one movie? I didn't think this was a real place – I thought it was based on-_ My thoughts were cut off by someone knocking my shoulder harshly as the street became more populated. I turned to yell at them, already in a bad mood, but Ivory kept pulling me forward, mumbling under his breath about assholes.

"So far, I don't like the sound of this town," I grumbled to him.

He laughed lowly and shook his head. "Sometimes you just have to keep your head down. A lot of disappearances if you end up around the wrong people. That's why we normally stick to ourselves."

I looked over at him, raising an eyebrow. "This doesn't look like sticking to yourself. What if I was a murderer?"

He met my eyes, and I realized he was wearing contacts to white out any color in his eyes, leaving only black pupils. "You're not a murderer," he chuckled. "Well, I mean, I think you could possibly kill someone on _accident_ , but I can just tell you're not a threat."

I sighed. "And here I went, putting my appearance together so people would leave me the fuck alone."

He snickered and looked around. "We're almost there. Are you going to need help setting up your room? We don't live that far away, so it wouldn't be annoying."

I shook my head. "No, I got this. Thank you."

We were quiet for a little bit, and I took the time to take in the scenery. The town was brimming with people of all kinds the closer we got to the boardwalk. I could tell it was late in the night, but it didn't matter to them. Where I lived, there were never this many people out after the sunset. I wondered how far I was from home.

Once we had made it to the motel, a two-story building that was surprisingly decent for the price, the three of them dropped me off, asking if I wanted to hang out tomorrow around noon so they could show me around and figure out how to get me home later on. I agreed and we parted ways with smiles.

I watched them leave until they were out of eyesight. Ivory was running back and forth in excitement while Morgue and Jamila knocked shoulders over and over again in some strange loving gesture. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also, this character is written as neurodivergent because I write what I know, and I am, in fact, neurodivergent. So, that's why she, like, responds to some stuff the way she does.

One thing I hadn't thought about the night before was the fact that I had no other clothes. Don't get me wrong, I didn't really mind wearing the same clothes for days on end. Hell, I had done it plenty of times before, and it wasn't like I could even wash the jacket or pants because of the patchwork, but I at least needed some febreeze.

I had gotten to charge my phone, but there was absolutely no cell reception or wifi near me which was extremely odd considering how populated this place was. My room was small with only a bathroom and a bed. I had at least expected a TV, but I supposed that beggars couldn't be choosers. It was still nicer than a lot of places I had stayed.

I moved from foot to foot anxiously while waiting for the trio to finally show up, and when they did, I practically jumped for joy. They led me around the city for a while, showing me where to shop, where to eat, and where I would want to work if I stuck around long enough. Jamila ended up paying for some things for me when she realized I had absolutely nothing on me, but all I could pay attention to was how outdated yet new everything looked. I was missing something, I could tell, I just didn't know what. Maybe I was finally losing it.

Time passed by quicker than it normally did when I was sober, but I could blame that on my new friends. We took a break as the sun started to fall after finally making our way to the boardwalk. We were lounging on the ground in front of a closed down shop, passing around a cigarette. Well, Morgue was smoking weed, but that was close enough. The boardwalk was getting busier and busier as the night came, teenagers replacing children. The street lamps turned on, and the night-only stores opened their doors, and it was beautiful, I wouldn't lie.

"Oh fuck," Morgue groaned lowly, pulling herself onto her feet slowly so she wouldn't fall. "I'm going to go get something to eat. Do y'all want anything?"

I shook my head, but my stomach growled in response. Jamila laughed loudly and followed Morgue in standing. Morgue automatically leaned against her, knowing Jamila would take the weight. "We'll find something, don't worry. Come find us if we're not back in fifteen," she paused, "or don't." Morgue snickered at Jamila's words and started leading her away, stumbling as she went.

Once they were out of sight, Ivory leaned his head on my shoulder, dreads pressing against my face softly. "I think she's been sneaking drinks," he giggled, holding my hand in his and tracing my fingers. "God, I wish I was drunk right about now."

"You don't need alcohol considering how you already act."

He laughed again. "I like you, Luna. I'm glad we met. You're so soft." He poked my side, and I threw a smack to his chest.

We fell into silence for a while until he abruptly lifted himself. "It's been a while, and as much as I don't want to walk into them fucking in some alleyway, I don't want them to be in trouble." He stretched his arms out in front of him and then cracked his back.

"You say that like it's a regular occurrence."

He groaned lowly. "You would be surprised. Stay here. I'll be back if I can't find them." He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lighter and handed it to me. "To keep yourself busy."

I took it and thanked him and then watched as he skipped off. Literally.

I was fine for a bit, but I quickly got bored, and I had left my phone at the motel considering there wasn't any service. So, I finally picked myself off the floor and glanced around before I started walking the way they had went. They hadn't shown me around the boardwalk, so I wasn't sure in the slightest what I should even be looking for, and I think it showed.

A voice piped up behind me as I turned for what felt like the hundredth time. The boardwalk wasn't even that big, but I was somehow still lost. "You're looking a little lost, princess. Are you in need of some help?"

I turned quicker than I thought I could at the pet name, I scowl written across my face. I didn't take well to shitty men. However, my plan of punching him soon died in my throat as I stared up at a man I had only seen in a movie. "Dwayne?" Either I was going crazy or this was the best cosplay I had ever seen. He had the outfit and face down to pat. It was incredibly realistic.

The name seemed to have caught him off guard because he quirked an eyebrow and his stupid smirk fell into a look of confusion. "I'm sorry. Do I know you?"

My breath caught in my throat. I had lost it. "Oh my god." I took an involuntary step back. "Dwayne? Like the vampire Dwayne?" He narrowed his eyes, immediately on guard, and I regretted the words as soon as they fell from my mouth. "Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." My breathing was rising as I took a step back and then another and another. "I've lost it. I'm losing it. This isn't real."

Dwayne – or a Dwayne lookalike? – placed his hand on my shoulder firmly and held me in place as I tried to back up more. "How about we just come over here where my friends are, and we can help you."

I was practically shaking like a leaf. Had I died? The last thing I remembered before waking up here was a car crash with fucking Johnathon. Was this heaven? Or even hell? Was I in some hospital-induced coma that put me in here? I knew this movie and how it played out. I knew the characters.

I hadn't even realized that Dwayne was moving me until there were voices calling out to us from a few feet away. "Dwayne! Who's the chick!"

I looked up and locked eyes with someone, and oh- god- it was all of them. Paul was the one yelling out to us, a grin on his face that fell when he saw me and how close to tears I was. Dwayne settled us in front of them, his hands on my shoulders as he kept me still. I just stood, clasping and unclasping my hands until someone spoke up.

"Dwayne," David's smooth voice filled the air, "what is this here?"

Dwayne pushed me forward a bit until I was only a few inches from David. I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head. "Please don't kill me," I whispered, tears streaming down my face. I kept my head down, not wanting to look at any of them. "Please, don't kill me, I can save you guys if you just don't kill me."

David blew smoke in my face. "What are you talking about?"

Dwayne finally spoke. "Lift your head, princess. Look at him."

When I didn't make the move myself, I felt David's gloved hand hold my chin and lift my head so I would look at him. "David, please," I whimpered. God, I felt so weak, but knowing what they could do, I was practically spiraling.

After locking eyes with me, David seemed almost confused for a split second before he was trailing his eyes over all the features of my face. His thumb rubbed against my quivering lip as if he didn't realize he was doing it. Then, he turned my head so I was looking at Marko.

Marko met my eyes and then immediately brought his thumb to his mouth. "Well, this is interesting."

Huh? I was slowly calming down, the events settling in my head completely for the first time which should have sent me overboard, but instead, I felt oddly calm just looking at them fully for the first time. Why didn't they look like they were going to hurt me? Why weren't alarm bells ringing in my head anymore?

I glanced over at Paul last, but he was already looking at me with wide eyes of excitement. What had I done? Why was he looking at me like that? There were so many questions running through my mind.

We were all quiet for a few moments until David spoke again. "I haven't seen you around here before. How do you know who we are?"

I subconsciously brought my hand to my face like Marko had, but instead of biting at my thumb, I bit my middle and ring fingers, a nasty habit I had acquired when I wasn't smoking or eating. I wanted to lie and make something up, but I knew David would see right through. I was a horrible liar ever since I was a kid. "That's – uh – that's a lot of weird explaining." I patted my pockets again before remembering that I had left my phone at the motel. "Fuck- goddamnit-" I breathed out lowly. At least I had a pack of cigarettes they had bought me earlier.

"Looking for something," David mused. I knew the other boys wanted to say something just by the look on their faces, but David was in control at the moment.

I glanced at him and then back at the ground. "It would explain things, but I left it at my motel."

Finally, Paul spoke, his words hurried as if the boys would get angry at him for doing so. "Can you just say it, chika? What do you need for it to make sense?"

I huffed a small laugh. "You'd be surprised."

That seemed to intrigue them. "We can walk you to your motel," Marko said, already pushing himself off the railing. "Keep the dangers away and all."

I took a step back directly into Dwayne's chest. "Uhm, thank you, but I was supposed to wait for my friends, and I had wandered off, so I probably need to get back there now."

They didn't seem to like that answer, but Dwayne stepped out of the way so I could back up some more. "Can you meet us tomorrow to explain, or will we have to find you," David asked, his voice neutral.

"I love a good chase," Marko said, grinning as he did so.

The fear was setting in again. Why were they letting me go so easily? "No, I'll meet you- uhm- here tomorrow night. Uh- okay bye."

I turned swiftly and started jogging away. Better to get away now while I still had the chance than have them second guess not killing me on sight. What the fuck was that?


	3. Chapter 3

I had met up with the trio again after practically sprinting from the boys, and they led me back home. Jamila spent the whole time trying to figure out where I had gone and why I was shaking, but Morgue was the one who got her to finally give up. They offered to walk me all the way to my room, but I declined, and I spent the entire night laying in my bed trying to figure out what exactly had happened.

By the time the sun had set again into the next day, I had only slept about thirty minutes, but I still pulled myself up and managed to grab my phone. I tried to figure out what I would even tell them without them thinking I was crazy. I could show them the movie, though my technology might have been enough, but I was scared of how they'd react to the ending.

I doused myself in cheap perfume that Morgue had oh-so-lovingly given me the night before, claiming I smelled 'like a living dump-truck.' I had no doubt, but I had never really worried about it before. Still, I supposed smelling like cheap perfume was better than beer, cigarettes, and body odor.

Once I made it out of my room, I wasn't quite sure where they even wanted to meet. I didn't have to worry for very long, though, because soon after I fully stepped onto the boardwalk, an arm was thrown around my shoulder and another around my waist, pulling me away.

I tensed almost immediately at the feeling, but the fear simmered once I heard Paul's voice in my ear. "Y'know, we never even got your name last night before you ran off," he spoke. Marko hummed in agreeance on the other side of me. "You seem to know ours, don't you? Of course, you didn't say me and my buddies. Can you say it for me, little dove? Say my name?"

My face was heating up as I turned to look at him. His bright eyes meeting mine, anticipation held in them. "Paul," I said, my voice quieter than I had originally meant it to be. "Your name is Paul." I turned to the other side. "And you're Marko." A small smile slipped onto his face at the sentence. "I'm Luna," I continued, "Luna Hallows."

"Your name is pretty, just like you," Paul mumbled. I almost tripped from embarrassment. When was the last time I was called pretty? I couldn't remember. My hands began clasping and unclasping again involuntarily. I knew they noticed, but they didn't say anything.

"Where are we going," I questioned after another moment.

"Right here," Marko replied as we came to a stop.

I looked up and met the eyes of David who was smoking yet again. I almost wanted to ask if I could have one, but I didn't have to because David had reached into his pocket and pulled one out, holding it out to me. "You smoke?"

I paused, caught back, but I still took it from his hand, placing it between my lips. I went to reach for a lighter in my pocket, but he was still one step ahead of me. He flicked on his lighter and held it up for me to lean into. His eyes watched me carefully as I inhaled and blew smoke into the air above us. "Fuck," I groaned, taking another drag, "I haven't had an actually good cigarette in months."

He chuckled and put his lighter away, still watching me intently as he did so. "Did you bring what you needed last night?"

I sniffled and exhaled slowly. "Yes, but I can't show you in public." I hadn't even realized the innuendo until Marko was snickering beside me, making light-hearted jokes to Paul around me. "Not like that, fuckhead," I snapped, rolling my eyes, "but seriously, can we go under the boardwalk or something?"

David seemed to mull over the question for a second before responding. "You could go to where we live with us. It's secluded."

The cave. I chewed the inside of my mouth. Sure, no one would see us, but also, no one would see us.

"C'mon, doll, it'll be fun," Paul encouraged, holding me a bit tighter. "It's really neat, I swear."

"And no one will mess with us, so you don't have to worry about that," Marko jumped in, his nose trailing against the side of my face as he whispered. "Completely alone."

I shivered involuntarily but complied. To hell with it, I supposed. "Okay, fine," I grumbled, "let's go to your place," I paused for a second, "but I'm riding with Dwayne. He seems the safest." Besides being the calmest out of all the boys, he seemed to drive the best in the movies, only looking away from where he was going for a few moments. I knew they were vampires and probably had supernatural instincts, but that wouldn't help my nerves.

Paul and Marko groaned in sync as I pulled away. "Why him," Paul whined, trailing after me as I moved closer to the bikes. I gave him a look that had Marko cracking up, a look that said 'do I even need to explain?' Paul pouted in response but got onto his bike, and Dwayne walked up, placing his hand in mine and leading me to his bike.

I looked up at the thing sticking out of the back of it. "Isn't that supposed to be on a bumper car," I questioned, looking at the little wheel attached? Dwayne chuckled softly and nodded, helping me climb on after him. "That's so fun." I wrapped my hands around his waist loosely.

"You're going to need to be a bit tighter than that, princess," he finally spoke.

I went to dispute, but then, we were flying down the boardwalk and towards their home. Dwayne laughed in response, and it was a warm kind of sound. When I watched the movie, I always dreamed of being on one of the bikes when the boys flew down the beach, and being here now was absolutely exhilarating if not a bit terrifying. The wind whipped by us so fast that I could barely even hear the boys' yelling in happiness, though when I caught it, I couldn't help the giggle that bubbled out of my throat. They were infectious.

Once we had finally gotten to the cave, I showed apprehension at the idea of going down the rickety stairs. Dwayne's solution was to pick me up bridal style and carry me down even as I loudly protested, lightly hitting his shoulder as he smiled down at me.

He dropped me down on the ground once we got inside, and I gently punched him on the chest. "I hated that."

Dwayne quirked an eyebrow. "I find that hard to believe, princess, but you can say whatever makes you feel better."

I groaned and walked over to one of the couches, dropping down easily with a huff. Paul was immediately sitting beside me, throwing his legs over mine and grinning at me. I rolled my eyes and watched as the others got situated. David gestured for me to talk, but I paused. "Actually, okay, the screen is small, so I need you all to come over here near me."

Marko was the first to drop down on the other side of me. "If you wanted to be closer to us, you could have just asked, babydoll."

I shoved him and dug in my pockets, pulling out my phone, but Paul snatched it away before I could even unlock it.

"What is this?" His voice was filled with wonder as he stared at my lock screen. "I've never seen anything like it."

I took it from him and stood from the couch just as Dwayne and David dropped down at the other end. If I looked closely, I could see their hands intertwined, but I didn't comment on it. I stood on one of the tables, glaring at them as Paul and Marko both let out wolf whistles.

"This is the strangest thing you'll probably ever hear, but I need you to stay quiet and listen until the end." I paused, and they all nodded in agreeance, their full attention on me. "Okay, now, I am not from here in the sense of, I'm from a different universe in the year 2021- Paul you shut your fuckin' mouth before I hit you." Paul closed his mouth and pouted. "For proof, I didn't have much on me when I got here, but I have my phone." I held it out in front of them, turning on the screen. "The only reason I know I'm from a different universe and not just another year is because, in my universe, you're all in a movie. You're fictional characters- not real." I paused again when it looked like Marko was going to speak this time, shooting him a half-hearted glare, "I have proof of that, too." I unlocked my phone and flicked through my apps, opening my downloaded movies and holding it out so they could see the cover. "You're in a movie. That's why I knew your names and why you're vampires. That's why I want to help save you. Now, you can speak."

Marko was the first to speak. "Save us from what. Also, you look really hot standing up there like that."

I ignored the second statement and put away my phone. They were taking this better than I had expected. "Would you like to hear everything that happens in the movie or actually watch it?"

"Paul's attention span is too short for that," David spoke. "Explain it for now, and we can actually watch it later."

I sat down on the table, much to the boys' disdain, but continued facing them. I swung my feet back and forth, deciding to just start from the beginning. The boys seemed to soak in my words as I went, but they could tell I was growing uncomfortable near the end of the explanation, biting as my nails as I gently described that they each died one after the other. It seemed to sober up Paul and Marko pretty easily while the other two had been serious since I had pulled out my phone.

Paul grumbled to himself and turned his body more towards Marko. "I don't think I want to watch the movie anymore." Marko nodded in response.

We were all quiet for a few moments until Dwayne stood up and sat on the table next to me. "May I look at your – uh – phone?"

I pulled it back out of my pocket and placed it in his hands. "You probably need me to explain it, huh?"

Dwayne flipped it around in his hands a few times before nodding. "I don't really understand how you say this is a phone. I have so many questions. It's so small, and I've never seen a screen like this. There are no buttons."

I chuckled and turned it on, unlocking it and holding it out to him. "Technology advances quite a bit in the next few years. This isn't even the newest kind of phone. People have skinnier ones and some that can do much more."

He quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean? I thought it only made calls. You said it was a phone."

I grinned and turned my body completely so I was facing him, holding it out so he could see as I moved through my apps. I explained to him the best I could how it could be used for phone calls, texts, music, movies, and more. He seemed the most intrigued about the internet, and I took quite a while explaining how different the modern internet was compared to what they had.

Paul had stolen the phone halfway through so he could figure out how to listen to my music. I had to stop and make sure he wasn't going to break it to which he laughed and ran off. I could hear him find my Spotify a few minutes later, playing a punk song much louder than he had probably meant to.

David was the one who finally pulled me away from Dwayne once I had explained as much as I could to him. David hadn't moved at all except to bring out a cigarette or three. His voice was deadly calm as he spoke up. "If you've seen the movie, and it's obvious that we're the villains in it, then why are you helping us and not them? You said you've seen us kill during it. You know what we are."

I hadn't prepared for a question like that, though I probably should have. I paused, trying to figure out what to even say without sounding stupid. "I don't know," I mumbled, "it's hard to explain. It's like- well- whenever I watched the movie, especially as a kid, I always preferred your characters over the main characters. Like, I could definitely understand both parties, especially after learning that you were sort-of forced to make Michael drink, but-" I huffed and shook my head. "I think I would rather see you win in the end than the Emersons if I really had to choose. Watching your deaths was always really hard – it just made me really sad. Especially Marko – he was literally just sleeping." I ran my fingers up my arms, trying to soothe myself. "I know it's dumb, but-" I laughed to myself. "I also used to always dream of being a vampire, so that's definitely a part of it."

A smirk crawled onto David's face, his gaze crawling over me. "Is that so?"

My face was beginning to burn, and I couldn't meet his gaze, instead watching Paul and Marko. They had figured out how to listen to my playlists without it being insanely loud, and they were headbanging to something. "Well, it was a lost hope in my world, but I hadn't thought about it since I've been here."

Dwayne's voice replaced David. "Well, you should think about it."

I grinned and bit my lip. This was promising after all.


	4. Chapter 4

The boys had sent me home that night a bit early, claiming they needed to think and eat, and I tried not to think of the implications of that. Once I finally got back to my motel and laid in my bed, the reality of everything truly set in. Maybe I had died and this was all some weird fever dream.

Once the day came, and I had barely slept again, I decided to go looking for a job with little to no luck. The boardwalk didn't have many businesses hiring, and the few that were were either filled with unsavory people – like the bar that I immediately walked out of once I saw a few surf nazis - or somewhere I didn't want to get involved – like Max's video store or the Frog brothers' comic shop.

By the time the afternoon came, I was lying across a bench with my eyes closed, trying to at least rest my joints before starting up again. I wasn't laid for too long, though, before I felt someone smack my forehead. My eyes flew open, prepared to throw a punch, but I was met with the grinning image of Ivory, his face dangerously close to mine.

"What are you doing down here, moonlight," he asked. "I thought about just, like, straddling you and shaking you until you woke up, but I figured that would cross a line or something."

I grunted and forced myself to sit up, patting the seat beside me so he would sit. "I've had weirder encounters, but I definitely would have decked you if you had done that, so," I trailed off. "Weird question," I started, giving him a side-look to make sure it was okay. He nodded to get me to continue. "Why is your name Ivory? I've never seen someone named that before, and I think it's really pretty."

He was grinning at me, and he turned his body fully so his legs were crossed and he was fully facing me. "Normally, I wouldn't outright tell people this, especially after only knowing them for a few days, but seeing how you are, I figure you won't throw a fit." He paused for a second as if he were gonna back out and lie, but he continued after a moment. "Ivory wasn't my original name. When I realized I was a man and not a woman, I switched to the name Ivory mainly as a joke in the beginning considering," he trailed off and stuck his arms out, "well, I'm nothing close to Ivory." He wasn't wrong. His skin was almost as dark as the night sky, a sharp contrast from the color of real ivory. "But it grew on me, and it ended up sticking."

We were silent for a while, and then I turned to sit like he was, facing him. "Why do you feel comfortable enough to tell me so soon. I mean, I can tell that the people around here aren't the most accepting."

He looked at me like I was stupid for a second and then gestured to my jacket. "You have a patch that says 'protect trans kids,' idiot. You have a lot of stuff on there that made me think that you were okay to talk to – even that flag on your chest, though I still don't know what it stands for. That's part of the reason we all became friends with you."

I had forgotten most of the stuff on this jacket, but I knew the patch he was talking about – one the shape of a yellow triangle with the words in black. It was somewhere on the back of my jacket, near the bottom left if I remembered right.

"Morgue sure doesn't seem to like me," I joked. It wasn't a real complaint, but I couldn't lie when I said she didn't seem to enjoy my company.

Ivory rolled his eyes and stood, holding his hand out so I would take it. He began leading me away, and I figured we were going to meet with the others. "Morgue likes you, she just shows it differently. You'll get used to it if you stay around for a while." He glanced over at me. "Speaking of. Will you?" I hummed in confusion. "Stay," he said, a grin poking through as he did. "Originally you said you wouldn't be around long, but it'd be really cool if you stuck around. I don't meet a lot of really cool people here. We were actually thinking about moving around. Too many fuckin' white supremacists and shit around here. It surprised me considering I had always heard that it was different, but-"

I shook my head and grinned back. "I'll try to stay as long as I can. No promises, though." I really couldn't promise. I wasn't exactly sure how I got here besides the fact that I probably died in the last universe. Maybe that was the portal? Did becoming a vampire count as dying in this universe?

Ivory seemed content with my answer, though, and he swung our hands back and forth as he drug us towards a small diner near the end of the boardwalk that served mainly burgers. "Oh- I don't- I don't have money yet, Ivy," I said, my footsteps faltering.

Ivory looked at me like I was an idiot and tugged my hand, leading me on. "I'll pay for you, dumdum, and don't call me Ivy. I don't like that one."

"What do I call you then?"

He hummed quietly, thinking. "Call me... baby." He smirked and led me to the back of the restaurant. I could see Jamila and Morgue already pressed together in one side of the booth. "Platonically, of course."

"Why? 'Cause you're a big baby?"

We both laughed loudly as we slid into the booth, and the two girls gave us curious glances that we brushed off. The four of us fell into easy conversation and banter, and it felt nice to have real friends for the first time in a while. For the longest time, I only had Johnathon, and he was an absolute shithead.

I smacked Ivory's hand as he tried to steal another fry from my basket, but he just laughed in response. Jamila spoke up. "So, what are you doing out and about anyways, Luna," she asked, taking a fry from my basket as well.

I pushed the food to the middle of the table for them. "I was looking for a job, but I couldn't really find anything."

Jamila elbowed Morgue gently, and Morgue gave her a soft glare, chewing on her food slowly. The two seemed to have a silent conversation with their eyes for a few moments before Morgue groaned and turned to me. "I can talk to my boss about getting you a job at the restaurant I work at. We're looking for someone who can work afternoon shifts. Just six hours a day working the grill." She seemed reluctant to tell me the information, but I smiled at the offer.

"Are you sure you wouldn't mind? I wouldn't want to step on your toes. I've worked in a kitchen before, though, for two years before I came around here." It wasn't a lie. I had worked in a homestyle kitchen since the age of seventeen. I was nineteen now.

That seemed to interest her. "Really?"

We talked about working in restaurants for a few hours, learning each other's skills and gossiping about coworkers, and towards the end, I could've sworn she had finally warmed up to me. She didn't even glare when I asked her for a cigarette when we were walking around.

Our time together was cut short when I felt someone pick me up from behind, a familiar laugh sounding as he did so. I let out a yell and flailed, but he quickly put me down, and I turned to see Paul grinning from ear to ear as he held my waist. "Hey, chika. I thought we had lost you for a second; we've been looking all over for you!"

I tilted my head and looked up. I hadn't even realized how much time had passed, but the moon had risen into the sky, pulling us into the night. I had been with the trio for hours by now. "I'm sorry," I finally replied, "I was out with my friends. I didn't think you'd be looking for me."

Paul looked over his shoulder to my friends and gave them a smile that two of them reciprocated before turning back to me. "Of course, we were. David wants to talk again. I just wanted to see your pretty face."

I rolled my eyes and jokingly shoved him. "Give me a minute, okay?" I went around him and stood in front of the trio. "I'll see you guys tomorrow? I've got some business to attend."

Ivory shook his shoulders and bit his lip, but Morgue pushed him to stop him. "Yeah, of course. I'll talk to my boss about getting you a job, and let you know tomorrow night?"

"That'd be great. Thank you." Paul was already wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me back, so I yelled a few goodbyes over and over, giggling as Ivory and Jamila threw kisses at me. Morgue was pulling them away when I turned back and gave my full attention to Paul.

Paul walked with a little pep in his step as he went. "I like it when you laugh. It's a pretty, little sound – something I could listen to for hours."

"You big flirt," I grumbled, but I couldn't deny the blush rising to my cheeks. "I like your laugh, too. It's contagious."

He gave me the softest smile I'd seen from him and looked away. "You're going to make my undead heart start beating again."

"Oh my god."

He led us over to his bike and helped me on, much to my dismay. They were already at the cave, he explained, and he figured I wouldn't like flying so soon. I didn't mind the ride, though, because I got to cling to Paul the entire time as he laughed at my screams. He took a bit too much pleasure out of my fear.

When we finally got to the cave, he told me to jump on his back, and he raced down the stairs much faster than I had expected and giggled as I yelled in his ear to slow down. The boys all turned as we finally dropped in, though that was expected given how loud we were. I didn't get to see how they were positioned before Paul was leaning down and pushing me up so I was on his shoulders instead of back. I squealed and gripped his hair as tight as I could. "Don't drop me," I cried, but he only laughed in response.

"I wouldn't dream of dropping you," he responded, holding my thighs tightly. "Don't you trust me, chika?"

"No!"

Marko let out a loud laugh, and I looked over to see them watching us, each with grins on their faces, though David's was much more hidden than the others. "I wouldn't trust him either, babydoll!"

Paul grabbed the bottoms of my thighs and lifted me over his head before dropping me down in front of him and catching me before I hit the ground. He then placed me on my feet and grinned down at me. "I'm very trustworthy, I'll have you know."

I shoved his shoulder and backed up, turning to the boys. "Alright. What am I needed for tonight?" I walked over and dropped down on a couch beside Dwayne. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders almost immediately.

David dropped his cigarette and blew out some smoke. "We need to talk about the movie again – the future. Either we need to watch it, or you're going to have to go completely in-depth with it all so we can figure out how to change the ending."

I smiled. "Actually, I kind of already have an idea, if you don't mind me sharing."

David quirked an eyebrow and leaned back in his wheelchair. "Go on."

"Ok, so," I stood from the couch much to Dwayne's chagrin and then climbed on top of it beside him, standing and facing them. "Sorry, I explain better if I'm higher up." Dwayne traced patterns on my calf as he stared up at me, and I patted his head as a gesture of happiness. "I really do not know how far we are from the movie. Is it at least 1987?" David nodded. "The movie was released in 1987, and it's set during the summer, which we should be moving towards if the weather is correct. So, we don't have a lot of time, if I'm right. During this time, though, we should be taking in two people. A girl named Starr who is about my age by the looks of it and a little boy named Laddie who's about eleven." My hand fell to Dwayne's hair again, and I scratched at his scalp soothingly. He let out a content little sigh at the action. "No one really knows how you guys get them. Apparently, there's some stuff about Star in the book, but Laddie up to complete speculation."

"What does this have to do with the plan," Paul questioned, shuffling in his seat so he was laid against Marko. Marko opened his arms so Paul could lay comfortably.

"I'm getting there, but first I have another question. Do we care if Max lives? Like, are we trying to save everybody, or are we okay with losing a few people?"

The boys exchanged a few looks before David replied. "We don't mind either way."

A grin crawled across my face. "Sick."

And, so I began explaining the plan. Nothing could change too much from the original movie, or we wouldn't know how it would end. There was always the option of just killing the Emersons before anything happened, but I would feel bad doing so. They weren't too keen on keeping Max around, but it was hard getting rid of their own sire. If we could get the boys to do it, though...

The plan was simple. Keep everything on track. I wouldn't tell them too much about the original movie so that they wouldn't change anything on purpose. They already knew a decently vague explanation of the movie from the night before, so they had a basic idea of everything that would happen, but hopefully, it was just enough to sate their curiosity.

The big change would be when the Frogs and Sam planned on messing up Lucy's dinner. I would tell them a simple trick: don't invite Max in, and don't let Michael do so either. If things went correctly, especially knowing that grandpa knew about vampires and most likely how to kill them, the boys wouldn't have to do any dirty work at all.

"I know it's a lot of trust you have to put in me, especially since I can't tell you too much, but I swear, I'll get it done, and if something goes wrong, we'll figure it out together. However, I do think this might be just enough of a change that we all come out alive. Except, of course," I trailed off. I pulled my hand from Dwayne's hair. I had been subconsciously running my fingers through his hair the entire time. "What do y'all say?"

Everyone was quiet for a bit, and then David replied. "Okay."

Marko and Paul both whooped loudly and jumped from their couch. They pulled me down from mine and then around the cave. "Let's party, chika! We're going to win!"


	5. Chapter 5

This wasn't necessarily how I expected the night to go, but it had been a while since things had gone normally for me. Marko's hands were crawling up my thighs as his lips pressed against the area right behind my ear. The alcohol was heavy on my mind, but nowhere near enough that I didn't know what I was doing.

After I had danced with Paul and Marko for an hour or two, Paul had busted out the drinks and weed, and soon, we were all in a blissful haze. David was slumped in his chair listening to music from my phone. He had been the only one who hadn't messed with it yet, and when he heard Type O Negative for the first time, he was hooked. He had my headphones in his ears, a bottle of whiskey in one hand, and a cigarette in his other.

Dwayne was mostly sober so he could watch the unpredictable blondes. He had been skating around the area for a bit now, offhand doing a trick every now and then. There was music playing from Paul's boombox, too, so it wasn't completely quiet.

Paul was half-asleep on the fountain, but he was awake enough to sing along to whatever was playing every now and then. He followed the drumbeat on his chest as he did so, completely content on his own.

Marko and I were on one of the couchs. We had been passing back and forth bottles of vodka and triple sec while we talked, and after a while, I had leant in and kissed him while he was talking about my patchwork on my pants. He hadn't protested, instead immediately reciprocated, moaning into me when my hand tangled itself in his hair. Marko had quickly moved us so I was laid back and he was on top of me, his kisses trailing from my mouth to my neck. He had nipped my skin gently a few times but never enough to break skin, and I knew he had sucked a few hickeys into the exposed skin. I was content to let him work, taking in the feeling as long as I could. When I was in my old universe, I had dreamed of something like this happening, and to miss the opportunity would be horrendous.

I closed my eyes as he moved back to the front of my throat, his tongue laving over it before he went back to work. I hadn't even heard the footsteps walking up, only opening my eyes when I felt a new hand on my face. Dwayne had bent down above me so his face was above mine, though upside down. "Can I kiss you," he questioned, a small smile on his face.

Instead of responding, I reached the hand that wasn't in Marko's hair up and pulled his mouth down to mine. I had never kissed upside down before, and though it was a bit strange, it certainly wasn't the worst. I let out a heavy sigh when he pulled away, but he simply grinned down at me and then pressed another kiss to my lips followed by my forehead. "We should get you home soon, princess," he said, running his fingers along my jaw. "The sun comes up in a bit, and I know you're tired."

I shook my head and whined lowly as Marko pulled away, choosing to just rest his head on my chest. "I don't want to go."

"And I don't want you to go, but you still need to."

Paul shot up, speaking for the first time in a bit. "I want to drive her," he slurred, but then, he dropped and closed his eyes, and he was snoring in only a few moments.

I giggled loudly and pushed myself deeper in the couch. "I don't want to go, Dwayne."

Dwayne huffed and shook his head. "You'll see us tomorrow. We can even come back here."

I contemplated it for a second. "Give me another kiss first."

Dwayne complied and then pulled me off the couch, chuckling when Marko complained that the couch wasn't as soft as me. I had already fallen asleep as he began climbing the steps, though, so I didn't notice that we didn't take his bike, opting to fly us instead.

The next morning, I woke up in my hotel room with Dwayne's jacket draped over my shoulders. It was almost noon, and it made me grin. When was the last time I had slept longer than two or three hours? I couldn't remember.

Morgue showed up at my room as the sun began to set on the horizon and gave me the news that her boss would hire me if I came in the next day at noon for paperwork. That brought up the question of how I would be fully hired if I didn't have any identification. I didn't have any when I died, but even if I did, I'm sure a liscense saying I was born in the 2000s wouldn't suffice.

After offhand mentioning it to Morgue, she rolled her eyes and said it wouldn't be an issue. Places around here hired runaways and 'missing persons' cases all the time, people who couldn't exactly be logged in to any systems. They would just pay me under the table for the meanwhile. I was perfectly fine with the situation, happy I would finally be able to start paying the motel and get new clothes.

We went around that night and Morgue bought me a few pairs of pants and cheap shirts to wear to work in the meantime, telling me to just pay her back later if it was that big of a deal to me. I didn't want to steal, so I told her I would repay her right after my first paycheck.

We were leaned against a store wall sharing a cigarette when Marko showed up. He hadn't seen us at first, instead looking around wildly as he passed, but when he made eye contact with me, he bounded over, his jacket jangling loudly as he did so. "Hey, babydoll, are you ready to go?"

Morgue took the cigarette from me, her eyes narrowing at Marko's form. "Are you going to be hanging around those boys a lot, Luna," she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, quite a bit, I think."

She hummed and then breathed smoke from her nose. "Just don't be late tomorrow."

"Wouldn't dream of it!" I gave her a big grin and let Marko drag me off, turning to see her stomp the remains of her cigarette out before walking off.

Marko pulled me through the crowds with me dragging behind for a few moments before he pulled me closer, wrapping his arm around my waist. The crowd parted slightly for us, giving us enough room to get through and then some. It seemed most people didn't want to be near Marko, but I imagined the boys had a reputation around them, so it wasn't too surprising.

"Are we just going to the cave tonight," I questioned as he slowed his pace a bit.

Marko nodded. "We figured we'd go eat first," he replied, "if that's okay with you."

I grinned but it dropped quickly. "I don't have any money."

Marko rolled his eyes. "Come on, doll. Do you really think we'd have you pay?"

"I can't keep bumming off of people," I said, bumping his shoulder with mine.

"It's not bumming if we're the ones who offer." He bumped my shoulder back.

I huffed and crossed my arms, clasping and unclasping my hands as I did so. "Still."

We finally stopped in front of the boys, and Paul bounced over, taking one of my hands in his and holding it to his chest. "I promise, it's fine," Marko said.

"What's fine," Paul questioned, pressing closer and smiling down at me. "I miss something?"

"She's worried about us paying for her."

David was the one to speak next. "Worried? Why are you worried?"

I bit the thumb on my free hand and shook my head. "I don't know. I've been having people pay for me a lot because I don't have anything here. Makes me feel bad."

David shook his head and pulled me from the two boys much to their dismay and began leading us away from the bikes. "It's nothing to worry about. Normally, it would bother me a bit, but you're helping us live, and you're not bad company, so don't think about it. Is there a specific type of food you would like?" My stomach grumbled loudly and I stuttered before mumbling that I would take anything.

David led us to a dine-in pizza place, claiming that it was one place they hadn't been to in quite a while. We had settled down in a booth in the back, and I watched with wide eyes as Paul and Marko raced to see who could finish their pizza first. Both had an extra-large pizza in front of them, one that I figured would take me a few days to get through, but they ate it in less than an hour, and Marko even managed to snag a piece of Paul's as well.

"Where does it go," I asked Dwayne, leaning over a bit towards him. I was sitting between David and Dwayne on one side of the booth. "They're so small."

Dwayne shrugged. "Who knows. It's a mystery."

I took another bite of the pizza I was sharing with Dwayne, one with a lot of vegetables and meat that the other boys thought was abhorrent. "Why did you guys want to hang out, anyway. I mean, you don't really have to hang around me until the movie starts." The question was out for anyone to answer.

David was the one to respond. "You say that like we don't like your company." He had pushed away his food after only eating a few slices, but Paul and Marko were happy to take the excess. "What? Do you not like ours – because it'd be strange to say that after last night."

Marko snickered from his seat, and Dwayne pressed a kiss to the side of my head. I curled in on myself without even thinking about it. "No, I like hanging around with you guys. I just – I just didn't expect it is all. To be fair, I thought y'all would kill me the first time we met."

David let out a low hum and shook his head. "Special circumstances."

I let out a questioning sound and watched him as he looked away. "What do you mean? You didn't know that when we met."

David glanced at me and looked away. "I'll tell you about it later, alright?"

It wasn't really alright because now I was more curious than ever, but Dwayne got my attention before I could continue asking. I felt the back of his hands run under my chin before he cupped my face and pulled it over so I would look at him. I swore my heart skipped a few beats from excitement.

He didn't move to try and kiss me, just looked over my face for a moment before his lips quirked just the smallest bit and he pulled away. I stared at the table, trying to catch my breath and my face heated up. The duo on the other side of the table was cracking up at my situation, but I couldn't even find it in myself to be annoyed at them.

"Now, that's just cruel, Dwayne," David mused, and then he was pulling my face to his. He paused for just a moment, meeting my eyes to make sure it was okay, and then he bent down and kissed me softly, pulled away, and then pressed again, harsher this time. I practically melted into his hold and chased his lips when he finally pulled away. He rubbed his thumb against my cheek before letting me go, and I returned to staring at the table.

"Okay," I breathed out, "yeah, okay, I can work with this."

Paul let out a huff and groan and I looked up to see him leaning dramatically against Marko. "Well, now I'm feeling so left out. If only a pretty lady with a really cool blue mohawk, and brown eyes, and a nice ass were to come and kiss me better."

I broke out into a fit of laughter, bending forward and clutching my stomach as I did so. "I- I love you, Paul. You're the best," I said between laughs, wiping at my face as tears fell. He beamed at me as I collected myself.

Marko smacked his chest and frowned. "Dude! You lucky bastard." Paul shoved him back and they began wrestling in the booth, and I laughed again as they did so. I could definitely get used to this. I could get used to them.


	6. Chapter 6

Nothing much happened for a few weeks after that night. I was accepted for the job and spent most of my afternoons working the grill and the nights either going around with the boys or causing chaos with the trio. It felt nice to finally have cash in my pocket when I was paid at the end of my first week, and I gave the motel my first payment with a grin on my face.

Nothing had changed between me and the boys. We would kiss every now and then, but that was the extent of it. It wasn’t until I had to pick up an extra shift that something had changed a bit. The restaurant didn’t close until three am due to the boardwalk being open that long, but I hadn’t normally worked past eight. However, all of the night-shift employees had come down with an illness, and I was the only one free to watch everything. Mrs. Janice, my boss, told me she would pay me double if I did this for her, and I agreed, hoping the boys would understand when I didn’t show up.

Mrs. Janice disappeared once the night-time came, telling me that if I couldn’t handle cleaning everything, anything I left would be cleaned in the morning. It wasn’t the most sanitary, but it would do.

The restaurant was open-style so the customers could watch me cook from behind a bar, and I could watch people come in. There was only one waitress, but she was currently making out with her boyfriend in a back booth. They were the only people here since it had hit about one. Well, they were the only people until a certain group of four vampires sauntered in and immediately made their way to me. I didn’t think the waitress had even noticed them.

Marko leaned on the counter separating us and gave me a stupid grin. His hand reached up and pulled a piece of hair from the half-done ponytail it was in, twirling it around. “Hey, angel, what are you doing here so late?”

I grinned and led them away towards the checkout area so there were no grills separating us. “I have to close for the night. Everyone else left.”

Marko’s grin seemed to grow even wider. “ _Everyone?_ ”

I rolled my eyes and shoved his shoulder. “There’s still a waitress and her boyfriend here, but nobody besides that, no.”

He leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my lips before backing away so Paul could take his place. “So, technically, you could ditch this place.”

“Yes, and _technically,_ I could lose my fucking job, dumbass.”

Paul didn’t look at all thrown off by the banter. “You don’t need a job if you just become a vampire.”

Dwayne knocked him upside the head as a way to tell him to lower his voice, but the waitress was still caught up in her boyfriend. Her shirt was practically off at this point, barely clinging to the skirt it had been tucked into. I could tell Marko kept sneaking glances, but when I smacked his shoulder, he turned back.

“I’ve already told you I can’t do that right now.”

“Right now,” he leered, wiggling his eyebrows.

“Oh my god,” I groaned. “Not right now.” I looked over as a group entered the restaurant. Just my luck – as soon as the boys come in, we get a bit of business.

The waitress looked up, finally, and moved quickly to put her shirt back on, fixing her lipstick as she pushed herself out of the booth. I watched as she fell into her position, passing out menus and taking drink orders. They ordered an appetizer, just loaded fries, but I grumbled nonetheless as I moved to do my job.

My boys each took a seat on the barstools, watching as I moved around. It would have been unnerving if it was anyone else, but they weren’t that intimidating now that I knew them. Marko drummed his fingers on the counter as he looked around at everything while Paul hummed a tune to go with it. Dwayne was content to watch me work, his eyes trailing along everything I did in a gentle and comforting sort-of way. David, on the other hand, was staring off into space, but I could tell that he was listening to the group that had walked in.

After handing the food to the waitress who I really needed to learn the name of, I turned back to the boys, placing my hands on the cutting board in front of me. “Do you boys want anything to eat? You don’t have to pay, and I can grab a few menus for you to look at.”

David’s attention moved to me as the other boys looked to him for permission. He pulled out a cigarette and gestured it at me as he lit it. “We’ll pay, don’t worry. Are you sure you’re okay with it?”

I grinned at him. “It’s my job, David.”

The other three jumped at the opportunity for food. For Marko and Paul, I was sure it was just because they were hungry, but I figured the other two were more curious about how I cooked, even in this setting. Marko just wanted chicken fingers and fries while Paul wanted a bacon cheeseburger. Dwayne also wanted a burger but with a lot of vegetables on it, and lastly, David wanted steak with about three different sides just to see what the food all tasted like. A few minutes into cooking, however, and having already started the other table’s order, Paul realized we served milkshakes and practically threw himself at the opportunity to have one, Marko following in suit.

I watched as they drank their drinks faster than I thought possible and then asked for another and another until Dwayne finally told them to stop before they became sick. David, by the end, had asked if we served any alcohol and seemed far too eager to get a cheap beer in his hand.

That didn’t change when I placed their food in front of them and Paul and Marko seemed to grow even louder, throwing fries at each other as they did so. To save David’s mental state, I pulled the waitress aside and told her I would step out for a few moments and to tell me if someone came in. She seemed reluctant to be left alone but nodded anyway. I watched as Paul and Marko finished off their food by throwing their last few fries at each other before I asked them to follow me. On my way out, I pressed a kiss to the side of David and Dwayne’s heads and mumbled that I would be right back.

I led Paul and Marko to the door that led out back. It was a small area with a dumpster and a smoking and break area for employees. I barely made it a few steps out before Paul was pressing my back against Marko’s front, and his lips were covering mine.

I groaned and pulled away from him. “You taste like the fuckin’ burgers, Paul. Not very good.”

Paul pushed a hand into his jacket pocket with a stupid grin on his face and pulled out a pack of gum, flashing it to me. “I come prepared, chika. Don’t worry.”

He made a show of pushing a piece into his mouth and chewing. Then, he leaned over me and gave Marko a piece the same way, pushing it in slowly and grinning when Marko jokingly bit his fingers. Then, they returned their attention to me, and Paul’s lips were back on mine, pushing the three of us back until we hit a wall. Marko was content with my neck, laving his tongue across the area when he added a new mark. At one point, he bit down, not harsh enough to break the skin, but enough to make an embarrassing sound leave my mouth.

Paul pulled away from my mouth, and Marko grabbed a bit of my hair so he could tilt my head back and replace Paul’s mouth with his own. Paul got to work on the other side of my neck, and by the time the waitress had come back, I was thoroughly out of it.

Walking back into the restaurant wouldn’t have been as embarrassing as it was if David’s eyes hadn’t been trained on me the second I walked back in, a knowing smirk on his face. He had finished his food completely while Dwayne was finishing the last of his fries. My face heated up as I stepped back behind the counter, taking the ticket from the waitress and thanking her. Marko dropped back in his seat beside Paul, the two looking prouder than ever.

“How much longer do you have to be here,” David asked.

I looked away from the grill to him and then back. “I have to be here until three. Why? What time is it?”

David looked at the clock behind me. “About ten ‘til.”

I plated up the last of the food and turned quickly. “Oh shit-“ I lowered my voice after realizing what I said, clamping my hand over my mouth. I was moving quickly, excited to finally be leaving. I grabbed more cleaning supplies than I could realistically carry and set to work closing everything down. The waitress seemed happy that I was moving quickly; I imagined she wanted to see her boyfriend, of course. I wanted the same.

I almost fell at the thought, steadying myself on the counter. _Boyfriends?_ I smiled at the thought, but at the same time, I felt a bit of worry settle in me. I couldn’t deny that I had a crush on all four of them. How could I not? Having watched the movie since I was a child was one thing, but being able to really talk to them and get to know them? Being able to kiss them, maybe let their hands trail a bit too far before I stopped them? It was enough to make anyone feel how I was feeling. It didn’t mean they liked me back. They were vampires. They could get any girl or boy on the boardwalk if they wanted. Why would they settle for me?

I scrubbed the counter and shook my head, trying to get rid of the thoughts. The waitress passed by a bit close and then leaned down to talk to me while I wiped off excess water and started on the grills. “Are those boys paying?”

I nodded, knowing David would be annoyed if I said no. “Yeah, if you ask them what they got, they won’t lie.” I looked up to make sure they were listening, and Dwayne nodded back so I knew he had paid attention. “The two on the right, though, got five milkshakes each.”

She pulled out her writing pad and wrote it down. “Alright, are you okay with my boyfriend staying while we clean?”

“Are you okay with them sitting there?”

“That’s alright.”

“Then, yeah.”

She gave me a beaming grin and then moved to my boys. Dwayne recited what they got to her while David was already pulling out cash, and when she read off their total, I could tell he gave her much more than needed. I smiled to myself as I continued scrubbing.

I finished cleaning faster than I thought I would since the waitress helped, and the boys stayed mostly quiet except for Dwayne asking if they could help – I said no because I didn’t want to get in trouble – and Paul and Marko wolf-whistling whenever I bent over or squatted to get something or clean a lower shelf.

Leaving the restaurant should have been nothing but good, but the thought still weighed heavily on my shoulders. _What were we? Was how they acted with me just how they regularly acted?_ I hadn’t seen them flirt with others the way they had flirted with me except if they were going to drink from them.

Dwayne’s pinky hooked in mine as we walked down the boardwalk towards their bikes making my footsteps falter. He turned to me questioningly. The chaotic duo hadn’t noticed yet, too busy throwing each other around the almost empty boardwalk, and David looked back for a second before following the other two, giving us time.

Dwayne’s voice was quiet against the wind running past us. “Are you okay? You’ve been going in and out of thought all night.”

I clenched and unclenched my free hand, bringing it up so I could chew on my fingernails. “I think I’m fine.”

He quirked an eyebrow, but I looked away. His free hand reached up and turned my head back to him. “Come on, princess. Let me know what’s going on in that head.”

I frowned and shook my head. “No, I’m fine. Let’s just go meet up with the other boys.”

Dwayne leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine, and I felt my body relax into him. When he finally pulled away, he wrapped his arms around me in a hug. “You don’t have to talk about it right now if you don’t want to, but don’t let it plague your mind if it’s something we can fix. We love you. Don’t forget that.” I don’t think Dwayne had necessarily meant for the L word to slip from his lips the way it did, but the sound of it made my heart skip a few beats.

That certainly hadn’t made things easier, but the next few days didn’t help either. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all, i'm literally like a lesbian so why tf am i obsessed with fictional men. :|


	7. Chapter 7

Jamila had barged into my room the next morning with a grin on her face and a pep in her step. She let me get dressed and then urged me out the door, saying they were having a beach day, and she wanted me to be involved. The air was still biting - though the spring had begun to roll through - but it was warm enough that I wasn't completely uncomfortable.

I had snagged a small bikini from a pop-up shop. It was completely black, and covered what it needed to, but a bit less than what I wanted it to. Jamila had been hiding a bright red bikini under her clothes, and she quickly shed them once we reached the beach, running into the water until she was waist-deep. Morgue joined her, clad in men's swim trunks and a tank top over a bikini top. I could hear Jamila screaming at Morgue to not get her hair wet, throwing playful hits when Morgue ducked like she would knock her over.

Ivory sat next to me on a towel, his knees pulled to his chest.

"Are you not getting in the water," I questioned, side-eyeing him as I continued to watch the couple.

Ivory shook his head. "No, I don't want to mess up my hair."

I chuckled. "That didn't stop Jamila."

He adjusted the way he was sitting so his legs were pulled tighter, then he laid his chin on his knees. "I don't like the water. I don't really know how to swim, and the thought of taking my shirt off makes me uncomfortable."

I turned so I was facing him and leaned forward a bit. "You don't have to take your shirt off, for one. Morgue didn't, and look at her. Nobody cares." His eyes flicked from me to her and then back. "And I can teach you how to swim if it's that worrying, but if not, you can still go about chest deep without worrying, baby."

He grinned a toothy grin and faced me fully. "I love it when you call me baby."

I rolled my eyes and stood, holding my hand out to him. "Come on before I regret my decision."

He seemed hesitant to take my hand but grabbed it anyway, patting himself down as he did so. I led him over to the water, my hand clasping his, and his hold seemed tighter and tighter with every step. Once we finally reached the shore, he stared at me with fear before pressing one foot into the water. He retracted almost immediately and turned to me with wide eyes. "It's cold."

I spent the afternoon easing Ivory further and further into the water, jumping the waves with him for fun. Then, when he felt comfortable enough, I tried teaching him how to doggy paddle, but he quickly gave up out of fright and also in fear of his hair getting messed up, a valid criticism seeing how clean he kept his locs. I knew they were hard to take care of compared to hair like mine, so I backed away when he wanted to.

Once the sun began to set, we settled on our towels and ate a small dinner consisting of food from the stands around the boardwalk. I paid for it, wanting to try and repay them for all they had done as time went by. It would have been an almost perfect day if I hadn't decided to walk off for a small smoke break once the night had finally set in. Ivory had jumped at the chance to join me, but I playfully pushed him back down and told him I'd be back in a moment. I just wanted a few seconds to myself.

However, almost as soon as I had ducked under the boardwalk, content to lean against one of the wooden beams, someone had cornered me into one of the dark areas, his arms caging me in. His breath stank of cheap beer as his breath fanned over my face, too warm, too gross. I pushed his chest roughly, trying to knock him away, but he simply chuckled and pressed forward.

"I've seen you before," he jeered, his voice near my temple. "You're always with those boys – the queer ones. They look like they pass you around, right? Like a whore? I'm sure you wouldn't mind taking another cock considering how you're dressed." His hands pawed at my bottoms, and though I had initially froze, I dove forward at the feeling of his hands, shoving him hard enough for him to go sprawling onto the ground, staring up at me in a drunken haze.

He looked as if he were going to protest, but I dropped to my knees on top of him and punched him as hard as I could, grinning as I felt his nose crack under my fingers. He whimpered and tried pushing me off of him, managing to hit me on the jaw, but I kept swinging, practically seeing red as I did so. I didn't stop until he had gone silent, knocked out. I checked his pulse with my fingers, not wanting to hurt him too drastically, and when I knew he was still alive, I finally stood and spit right on his bloody forehead. Then, I kicked him in the stomach for good measure, grinning as he groaned quietly in his sleep.

I huffed and ran my fingers through my hair, grimacing at the blood on them. "Fucking hell. Can't even smoke around here without some shit happening." I stumbled out from under the boardwalk, fixing my bottoms as I did so.

I hadn't expected to be met with the sight of my boys in front of the trio once I made my way back, though I was surprised more often than not recently. I would have tried wiping the blood onto my clothes if I had enough fabric to do so. Unfortunately, I was stuck with the task of walking up to them while covered in blood that was mostly not mine.

Marko was the first to turn at the sound of my footsteps, but the wolf-whistle I knew he was about to give was caught in his throat as his eyes trained on my hands. Paul seemed to notice that Marko's attention had been diverted from the conversation the group was happening because he followed Marko's gaze to me and immediately ran over, smoothing his hands over my face and running his eyes over me to make sure I was okay.

I groaned and pushed my hand against his chest, trying to get him away, but he didn't budge. "Are you okay? What happened? Whose blood is that? Do we need to hide a body? You look really hot in that swimsuit." The questions were leaving his mouth faster than I could catch them with, so I simply leaned my head on his chest and wrapped my arms around his waist, melting into him as he held me back.

"I'm fine," I mumbled against him, holding his jacket tightly. "Nothing I haven't done before. Now my knuckles are sore, though."

I could feel his disdain about the situation as I gently pulled away, wanting to see the others. He trailed after me as I approached the others. They had paused their conversation to watch me, and I felt my skin crawl at all the attention. I raised a bloody hand ad waved. "Uh, hey."

Jamila broke into a fit of laughter and hunched over as she did so. Morgue chuckled with her, but the rest seemed too concerned to find the humor in it.

David quirked an eyebrow. "Kill somebody?"

I shook my head. "No, I checked. He's fine. Though, I fucking should have for trying that shit."

David hummed and turned back. "Can we steal her for the night," he questioned the trio.

Ivory was the one to respond. "Don't you always?" His eyes met mine, silently asking if I was okay after whatever had happened. I nodded. "We're going to be heading in for the night soon, anyways. Keep her safe."

I grinned and bit my lip. "What? Are you my dad now, baby?"

He rolled his eyes. "I let you go off alone for ten minutes and you get into a fight. I will take the role of your father if I have to, young lady."

I giggled and intertwined my hand with Dwayne as he stepped beside me. "Alright, _dad_ , I'll see you tomorrow then. Morgue. Jamila. Don't get too fucked up."

Jamila grinned up at me. She had a drink by her side. "Already there, Luna. See you tomorrow." Morgue simply raised her hand, then Dwayne was pulling me away, the boys following suit.

Once we were a far enough distance away, Dwayne raised my knuckles to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to them. "What happened?"

I huffed and recounted what had happened to them quickly, trying not to get too caught up in the details. Marko disappeared half-way through and came back at the end, dusting his hands off. "I finished the job," he said with a lop-sided grin.

I huffed and shoved him. "He could have _lived_ , you idiot."

"No," David spoke up. "He couldn't have. No one can treat you like that and get away with it. He was scum of the earth." I huffed again but didn't move when David stepped in front of me, stopping me from moving. Dwayne's hand slipped from mine as David backed us up until we were pressed against a tree. We had gone farther than I had realized. The ground dug into my feet, but David's gaze burned worse. "You're ours now, sweetheart. You've realized that, right? Nobody's touching what's ours."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Yours?"

David let a smirk crawl onto his face before he leaned forward, capturing his lips against mine in an easy kiss. I reciprocated, grabbing the lapels of his jacket so he wouldn't move away. When we finally broke away, he pressed his forehead against mine. "Ours."

I leaned around his shoulder to see the others. Marko was biting his thumb, his eyes meeting mine almost instantly. Paul was behind Marko, his arms wrapped around his waist and his body pulled flush against the other boys. Dwayne was leaned against a different tree, only turning to meet my gaze when I turned to him. He nodded, confirming what David had said. Still, confusion ran amuck in my mind. Why?


End file.
